Bandsplain

Podcast on Spotify with 3-6 hour episodes on a given band/artist's career with intermittent musical selections. I'm a fan, though the quality of the episodes vary significantly based on the guest and Yasi's experience with the artist. Favorites so far:

- The Replacements episode with biographer Bob Mehr
- Gram Parsons episode with John Strohm of Blake Babies/Lemonheads/Rounder Records
- Dave Matthews Band episode with Grayson Haver Currin
- U2 episode with Rob Harvilla
- Pixies episode with Gina Arnold

episodes are three to six hours long??

lol yea...it's not "tight" at all. Most of these artists/bands have large discographies. They go album by album and tell the story of their arc, the recording and reception of each album, talk about a song or two and play it...It's made for a very specific audience.

the new two-part episode on The Cure (w/ guest Hanif Abdurraquib) is 7 hours and 27 minutes long.

:D :D

i love this goddamn gorgeous beautiful podcast so much

episodes are three to six hours long??

But I looked around and saw how long the episodes were and even with my long-ass commutes, I was like, damn son.

It's still too soon to know for sure, but I think the Joy Division ep may have permanently diminished my enjoyment of that band. Yuck.

Some bands maybe are just naturally resistant to 'splainin, or shouldn't ever be 'splained

all the more for me!

new season is HITTING for me so perfectly

The Cure two-parter was joyous, love how Hanif is just continually dropping beautifully eloquent insights, v lovely pairing w Yasi - great 2 parter, no notes

Joy Division included a lot of new info to me (I llove their music but never knew much beyond the headline) Dude from Ceremony was a nice guest but i felt bad bc he brought a little less insight/input to the table. But he had nice friendship chemistry so it was enjoyable more in a “friends talking” way

Enjoying Depeche so far <3

HILARIOUS to me that all the reddit comments are about the format change since they moved to The Ringer & how the full songs arent included anymore!?! like omg god forbid you seek out the music on yr own my god lmao lame poor Yasi

I mean, I do think it's a bummer SOMETIMES when they can't play the full song. She was talking all about how killer the lyrics to some song are, and then she played 5 seconds of music with no vocals. I understand the line they're trying to walk but when they really zero in on a particular song, it'd be nice to actually just hear the song. (Maybe they do this occasionally, I don't know. I'm only halfway through my second episode.)

idk, it never bothered me? but ymmv

Hang on, these fucken things are 7 hours long and that's not even because they're fitting in lots of music????

not anymore!

:D

oh man I hadn't realized they moved. That's a bummer, I really did like what they were doing with the included tracks thing. It felt new and interesting. I mean, I'll probably still listen and stuff because I think the pod is good even without that but I won't lie that feature was definitely a draw

I didn't realised they'd moved. Means I can grab as a podcast from my podcast app rather than using Spotify, which is useful. I'll admit, I liked having the songs *right there*, but I'll live.

the PJ harvey two-parter with Ann Powers (the god) truly healed me in ways I didn’t anticipate

i feel like i just took a college course in the best way <3

oh and the Clash 2-parter was interesting by contrast! Gaslight Anthem guy was the guest & he barely spoke! I think he was probably being respectful of Yasi & maybe not knowing the level of input expected but it was kinda funny. Her obsession w Bernie Rhodes made it a great listen though imo

the new Jane’s Addiction episode w Jessica Hopper is SO great imo

For me it scratches the same itch as the PJ Harvey two-parter w Ann Powers - maybe it sounds corny & obvious but i just love hearing two women talk about music in a way that celebrates and elevates it. sometimes intellectually, sometimes emotionally, sometimes “just vibes” as yasi would say. all-encompassing.

also their discussion of jane says is excellent

i love this goddamn gorgeous beautiful podcast so much

Since I've been listening to this podcast solidly for the last month I've started describing every song I hear in this way. I'm so glad I got over the host's annoying voice because I now love her and this podcast. She's so funny.

i have had to restrain myself from calling my friebds babe in group chats lol

"They've blocked out the wacky hats! They've blocked out the bongos! But I'm telling you, I was there. [...] This was part of the fabric of alternative culture. You cannot erase it."

Two to three hours on the Dave Matthews Band?

I have always called my daughter some form of baby or babe, but since getting into Bandsplain, I've been giving it the Yasi inflection.

<3

omg also Jessica Hopper’s you weren’t truly a teen in the 90’s unless you’ve given a dry handjob under a giant Ritual de Lo Habitual wall poster had me ROLLING

xxpost jimbeaux it’s longer than that, it’s a two parter! also they’re yasi’s favorite band and it was her birthday

Don't drink the motha fuckin' water

what are you all doing while you're listening to this podcast?

working on a computer? hanging out in the living room? running on a treadmill? riding the bus?

i'm genuinely curious.

it's so long i have to listen to it on, like, five different afternoon walks. (i can't listen to it while working.)

The only podcast I listen to anywhere near that long is Dan Carlin's Hardcore History, each episode of which I have to break up into chunks. Long road trips do provide an extended listening opportunity.

I have a 20 minute drive to and from work each day. The stereo in my car doesn't work, I've got a small Bluetooth speaker which is rubbish for music so that's when I listen to Bandsplain. Took me about 2 weeks to get through the Cure episodes.

i listen to it mostly while walking, and while working (work from home) … often in chunks but i like being able to go back to it in installments

plus it’s not like they’re time-dependent, you can take as long as you want to listen to them

I have a pool that has to get scrubbed 2-3 times a week because it was poorly maintained and needs constant attention and I hate it. I listen to this when I scrub the pool which takes an hour.

So far the PJ Harvey episode was my favorite. I like the dense, longer episodes so much that a shorter one is disappointing.

I'm halfway through Neutral Milk Hotel which has been great, lots of stuff I had never heard before. Favorite bit: while recording In The Aeroplane... one of the bandmembers would wake Mangum up in the morning by saying "Hey Jeff, wake up, we're gonna make a classic album." and at first Jeff would say "we are?" After a while he started saying "yeah, we are."

xp: yeah, for me podcasts (particularly long ones) are just what I throw on to keep me from going insane when I do chores. Walking the dog? On goes a podcast for 10 minutes. Washing dishes, cooking dinner, etc.

the “24 Question Party People” episodes that Yasi is putting out on the Bandsplain feed are so great - literally not a bad episode yet

so far: Liz Phair, Adam Duritz, Jason Isbell, Ian Shelton (Militarie gun), and today is Stephan Jenkins (Third Eye Blind)

what's the concept?

kind of a spin on the Proust Questionnaire - she asks 24 questions starting out with light easy fluff & delving into deeper personal/music questions as they go along. It’s quite revealing!

I listened to the Pixies one recently. Gina Arnold! Route 666: On The Road to Nirvana had the exact same impact on me that it did Yasi. I grew up in the middle of nowhere and finding that book exposed me to SO MUCH. It gave me a shopping list for my BMG/Columbia House orders. During the episode, Arnold talked about how nobody read the book except Yasi, so I wrote her an email telling her how much it meant to me. She wrote back a sweet reply. I printed it and tucked it in the book. I did a search and she doesn't get a lot of love around here, but she opened music up for me.

The Cure episode was really good. During the Pixies episode Yasi mentioned that she will do The Breeders in the future which I'm pretty excited about.

i requested Ginas book from the inter-library loan system after that Pixies episode, it’s next on my reading list!

xp that's awesome <3

I checked out Gina's book on Amazon, and stumbled on this gem in the reviews section:

my one problem is i found a number of discrepencies such as her naming chuck dukowski as the drummer of black flag? sorry sweetheart, he was the bass player.

(coincidentally(?), I also just started Yasi's podcast with the Liz Phair episode, where she describes her experiences with condescending gatekeeper rock dudes)

i went back and listened to the Gram Parson episode with John Strohm. Super-good episode. Strohm’s a huge fan but also brings a lot of musical insight, and he has a lovely chill vibe w Yasi.

Parsons*

Misfits was probably my least favorite. It was informative, but there was no chemistry between the hosts.

Randy Newman, on the other hand, was fabulous. Molly Lambert and Yasi almost broke my brain with the multi-layered vocal fry. They were having so much fun together that it was infectious, especially in the back half when they had loosened up and were getting into Randy's awkward years ("Masterman and Baby J").

The 24 Question Party People with Liz Phair also did this, but less so.

Radiohead episode blew my mind; they had a dude who knows a lot about music composition and it gave me new respect for a band that I already loved.

Molly Lambert is great - her podcast Heidiworld about Heidi Fleiss was so good

Radiohead episode blew my mind; they had a dude who knows a lot about music composition and it gave me new respect for a band that I already loved.

― Cow_Art, Tuesday, August 1, 2023 12:44 AM (nine hours ago) bookmarkflaglink

If you liked that episode you should listen to his podcast Dissect. It's rap focused and insanely detailed, occasionally ridiculous, but all around a great listen if you like the album he's dissecting.

The Talking Heads episodes with Rob Harvilla are a good time and well worth a listen. Yasi cracks me up, and they have a great dynamic together. The Paramore episode was interesting, as I'd known some but not a lot about their start and band turmoil, but I found the guest a bit short on insight.

I have to admit that the "new" format with short song snippets is a big improvement...Since I only really listen to the episodes of acts I already dig, I'm not sure there was much benefit to 1-1.5 hours worth of music I already know well being mixed in.

I had to bail out of the Dave Matthews Band Redux episode (part 1) after a couple of hours. I had already heard the original (shorter) version, and it was just too much DMB, who I don't like at all. I would get interested in the story and feel invested, and then they would play a clip and fuuuuuuuck no, it's just the wrong sound for my ears. Every instrument sounds like the worst version of that instrument. Nope nope nope

The Misfits episode wasn't too great, mainly because the guest was kinda humorless and thinks Danzig is a lyrical genius or something.

I'm enjoying this but only listening to ones about bands I like. Maybe I'll try others once I run out of those, I dunno if the vibes are enough to carry me through hours of DMB talk. Really enjoyed the epic Cure one, liked Jane's Addiction and Paramore.

I enjoyed the first part of the Talking Heads one, but I pretty quickly found the second one a little self-satisfied (even by the standard set by the first episode). I think I found it frustrating that so much of it is really well researched and funny/perceptive, but there are also these gaps that they (sometimes amusingly) just have no interest in filling. I dunno, felt kinda like a sober episode of Drunk History. I'll probably still finish it, though, it's mostly pretty enjoyable. And I really want to hear the Cure one.

i get way too invested in this podcast & i’m officially the neighborhood crazy lady now yelling & flapping her arms in the street
THE WAY I YELLED

I doubt I'll get a lot of people agreeing but Talking Heads - Naked got a bum rap.

1.) Breath is an excellent Pearl Jam song. Don't worry guys, I see you.
2.) High praise for the Paul Westerberg songs drove me insane. Those songs are corny-ass sitcom themes seated next to some of the best hard rock of the day. Yeah, I hum along to Dyslexic Heart out of a sense of nostalgia when I hear it at the grocery store, but eventually it's cycled out of the playlist for I'll Be There For You or How Do You Talk To An Angel or That Thing You Do.
3.) Their praise for the movie is itself suspicious. I haven't seen it in its entirety in a long time, but my friends and I walked out of that shit when it was in theaters. Based on the movie clips available on YouTube, I still would.
4.) I was definitely yelling in my mind while they struggled to build a case for the Lovemongers' Zeppelin cover. They got there eventually, but jesus christ.

I probably skip Breath too, I think. It's decent but State of Love and Trust is THE PJ song on the soundtrack to me.

this is why i can't listen to these podcasts, i will feel the need to yell at the hosts and they can't hear me

("breath" and "state of love and trust" are the two of the top three pj songs, third is "rvm")

yeah them being meh on Lovemongers def hurt my feelings too, i love that “Battle of Evermore” cover so fuckin much!

State is all-time, and I agree the linchpin of the soundtrack. End credits? Can't recall. Maybe it's the Trees song, which also rules.

thematically the Zeppelin cover makes so much sense.

way more sense than the westerberg schlock

totally!

i do have a soft spot for the Westerberg songs, myself

Drown
State of Love and Trust
Nearly Lost You
Would?
May This Be Love
Chloe Dancer/Crown of Thorns
Overblown
The Battle of Evermore
Birth Ritual
Seasons
Waiting for Somebody
Breath
Dyslexic Heart

'smore or less how I'd rank the songs from the original soundtrack. god i listened to this so so so many times back then.

i dunno if i could rank them, it’s all like one big song in my heart lol

fair! that was harder than i expected it would be

The Westerberg songs are the best ones of there

i was gonna say, thread's being a little harsh on "Dyslexic Heart" imo.

"State of Love and Trust" does rip, though.

I don't hate Westerberg's songs here, they are fine, but compared to his best work they are super corny.

The Kills were on 24 Questions today - it was almost like a podcast over beers, was such a fun conversation

Yasi is v good at this format imo

Jamie’s anecdote abt the Primal Scream guitar tech lining up rails of coke for the band onstage was not at all surprising but v amusing nonetheless

She should get the Raveonettes, I've ever heard them interviewed but they're probably cool

Talking Heads - Naked got a bum rap.

YES! I haven't listened again after that "they made one LP too many" nonsense. (I mean, it's about 7 times better than True Stories FFS.)

This happens with a lot of podcasts once I've listened to a bunch, but I am constantly vacillating between thinking she is the coolest person ever and one of the most annoying. Like, she seems pretty chill and dry and ironic and fun, but other times she speaks like a human meme. I still enjoy it, but it really irks me when people constantly say something slaps or bangs or is "gorg," or "I am dead,' or calls people "babe" and, very specifically in her case, shortens "bonjour" to 'bonj."

Josh, babe, you're giving Scorpio.

lol

babe, happy for u & sorry that happened but i’m not reading all that

<3

no thoughts just vibes

The Joshness of it all.

josh = not a bandsplain girly

It put me off at first, but I have come around to loving Yasi's idiolect

I do admit aspects of it are cringey because I generally don't like it when middle aged people use teenager slang.

It varies with the guest, i think?
For instance, Rob Harvilla seems to raise the level of discourse, but there was an episode with the guy from Eve 6 where i just couldn't do it.

this weeks mailbag w Rob is a delight imo

Love the show but my biggest gripe is Yasi’s middling taste in 90’s alt rock. Will be so relieved once we run out of all these Hootie, Gin Blossum, Toad the Wet Sprocket bands.

boooooooooooo

love it or leave it babe

Yeah great stuff existed prior to 1990 and post 2000 we used to be a proper society etc

y tho

Just want to pipe up that I've been listening to the records that Yasi and Rob recommended in the mailbag episode. I'm really excited about Blondshell. I'm only halfway through the album, but had to stop and post about it on ilx because I was getting my socks knocked off. As I mentioned in the indie thread, I definitely try to give a chance to any contemporary band that takes a page from 90s alt-rock, but usually don't come back to them that often. But I can already tell that I'll probably be listening to this for the rest of the year.

yeah i like Blondeshell thx to bandsplain also!

the 24 Questions w the Gaslight Anthem dude was fun
“Bryan Josephine Fallon” is a v good bit

I'm going to see Blondshell (w/Liz Phair) thx to Bandsplain — after I listened to the 24 Questions with Phair, I looked up the tour dates and promptly bought tickets. I'm not totally sure but under the impression Blondshell will play first, then will back Phair during her set. Psyched!

Oh, I think Blondshell's just opening, then Phair with her band. Anyway, should be good.

i’m seeing the show in SF! excited:D

i too bought tix after the 24 Questions w Phair <3

Mazzy Star ep is v good

also lol @ yasi referring to England as “Ole Limey” instead of “Ole Blighty”

Posted this in the Radiohead thread, but if you liked the Bandsplain on Radiohead, Cole Cuchna -- the second of the two guests in that ep -- is doing a full season on In Rainbows on his podcast Dissect.

oh cool!

24 Questions w Dogstar today was v fun, Rob & Bret seem like good dudes; esp enjoyed Yasi giving Keanu shit for playing bass throughout lol

Dammit, Yasi, why did you even bring a guest on the Smiths episodes if you’re just gonna talk over her every time she says more than 4 words in a row

It gets better in the second half, but that was the first (only?) time that Yasi bugged me. She mentions having some heavy shit going on in her life so maybe it was just a bad day.

She really did talk all over Naomi Fry.

Considering that we learned in the recent 60 Songs live episode that Yasi's most streamed song of the decade was Call Me Maybe, she should do an episode on Carly Rae Jepsen.